Bonsai?

Bonsai is usually a term for the extreme end of techniques to keep plants small. If someone restricts a plant's growth to half its natural size but no where near the smallest size possible, is that plant a bonsai? Is it half bonsai? From the Chinese penzai, bonsai is a Japanese word where the prefix bon means a tray-like pot. So, the word itself implies that the plant would need to be in a tray-like bonsai pot for the term to be accurate. While many people will call a plant "bonsai" if it's a potted miniature version of a much larger plant, I think the very shallow container and corresponding root restriction/trimming is what bonsai is all about, regardless of whether the plant could be kept smaller.

We keep our moms in about 3qts of soil and they stay around 6-7" tall with proper care. It gets harder to keep them small the older they are, so they are replaced by clones every couple years or so.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top